Arts Plan Up for Vote

By

Kaya Laterman

Dec. 17, 2012 11:01 p.m. ET

After years of discussion, a $330 million plan by Princeton University to build a large arts complex and shift the Dinky commuter-train line to a new station on campus is slated for a pivotal vote by local officials Tuesday.

The Regional Planning Board of Princeton, a joint board of Princeton borough and township whose approval is needed for area land-use measures, is scheduled to take action on the university proposal. A delay in acting on the proposal could cause complications because the board is slated to dissolve at year-end as part of a plan for the borough and township to merge.

ENLARGE

The university has been at work on the development plan since 2006, dealing with zoning issues, easement transfers and numerous meetings with elected officials of both the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township. Opponents have waged a vigorous fight against the plan, including bringing court suits in an effort to block the project.

"The university is in full compliance with zoning and there are no remaining outside issues to deal with. It's time to act and we are ready to move on," said Robert Durkee, a vice president and secretary of the university.

Dubbed the Arts and Transit Neighborhood, the development plan has been high priority for the university's trustees and President
Shirley Tilghman
,
who is stepping down in June after what will be a 12-year tenure. It calls for building music and dance rehearsal studios and outdoor performance areas, as well as new roads, parking and communal public spaces on the west side of campus.

To make room for the planned development, the university plans to move the campus terminal of the Dinky, the NJ Transit commuter line running less than three miles between Princeton and NJ Transit's Princeton Junction station. The Dinky carries about 1,000 weekday riders who connect with NJ Transit and Amtrak Northeast Corridor trains at Princeton Junction.

The Dinky's two current station buildings, both on university property, would be turned into a cafe and restaurant and the university would build a new terminal 460 feet to the south. A Wawa convenience store, a kiss-and-ride drop-off area and bicycle storage paid for by the university also are planned. The school would pay for all track removal and maintenance of the new station, said NJ Transit spokeswoman Nancy Snyder.

ENLARGE

The Dinky commuter train arrives at Princeton station in a 2011 photo.
Associated Press

Opponents argue that the added walk from the current station would deter ridership and that added roadways would be more dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists trying to get to the Dinky.

"The location of the new train station is hidden from roads and it's designated to kill the train service," said Bruce Afran, a lawyer and an adjunct law professor at Rutgers University. He represents several members of an opposition group called "Save the Dinky" that has filed three court suits seeking to stop the plan for a new station.

In its proposal to the planning board, the university said it needs to relocate the Dinky terminal in order to build an access way into an existing parking garage for use by visitors to the new arts facilities slated to open in 2017. The restaurant and cafe envisioned for the current station buildings also would serve visitors coming to the planned art complex, said Mr. Durkee.

But opponents don't see the need. "The university's reason to build a ramp into a parking garage isn't a viable reason to move the station," said Alain Kornhauser, a professor of operations research and financial engineering at Princeton. Mr. Kornhauser, also the director of the university's transportation studies program, says he would like to see alternative solutions to the university's plan, including moving the station north to Nassau Street, Princeton's nearby retail corridor.

The regional planning board is currently the only regional body in New Jersey that votes on land-use applications to see if they comply with state and local laws. Because of the pending borough-township merger, the board is slated to disband by year-end and appointments for a new board, which can include current members, are scheduled to be made next month.

If the university plan, which has the support of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, NJ Transit and the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce, isn't approved by the planning board on Tuesday, a vote on the measure will wait until the new board is up and running. Calls and emails to the planning board seeking comment weren't returned.

The Dinky was threatened with extinction in 2010 with a proposal to replace it with bus service. The idea was ultimately dropped.

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